Friday, March 15, 2013

It's a good week to be a Veronica Mars fan


Veronica Mars fans made history this weekend, and I'm so super excited about the whole thing, but even MORE excited to be a part of it.

On Wednesday, March 13th, the Rob Thomas and Kristen Bell put up a Veronica Mars Movie Project on Kickstarter, setting the largest goal ever set on Kickstarter. They have both been trying to get this movie made since the show was canceled, although it never got off the ground and this was their last ditch attempt to get it made as schedules worked out for filming summer 2013. If you don't know what Veronica Mars is, you are missing out, it is an AMAZING show about a teenage PI that is way more than that. Here's the kicker, the show ended on May 22, 2007.

Then Veronica Mars fans made HISTORY. Fastest time to $1 million, largest goal ever met (in under 12 hours no less) of $2 million. And that donation counter just kept going up. 

There's been a lot of discussion in the media and on blogs and facebook pages and phone conversations and gchats everywhere about this. One of the concerns here is that studios will see this success and use it to offset costs. To which I say: I don't think that'll be a problem. By which I do not mean I don't think they won't TRY, I do think they will try, but we are savvy consumers. And while I think this sets the stage for similar future projects, the Veronica Mars Movie was also lightening in a bottle.

This is a show that was om the air for 3 years before it was canceled and with fans who have been clambering for a movie for years Rob still gets this question from reporters all the time because the fans were so avid about it It had a solid hardcore loyal fanbase already long established and a cast and crew who all blatantly LOVED the show and were completely on board and working towards this project. And willing to work for minimum on a minimum budget it just to make it happen. Your average film does not have any of that going for it.

The other big thing people are criticizing is that if the movie becomes a box office success, the people who funded it won't be getting any of the back end. As one of the people who funded it, as someone who spent most of this week EXCITEDLY flailing with other people who funded it, WE DO NOT CARE. What we are is that we are a part of something we love, we are a part of making something we've wanted for a long time happen, with a cast and crew who love these characters so much and love the fans of the show even more. And if you chose a reward, you are getting something out of it. But even if there wasn't a reward (a lot of international backers had no promise of a reward) they would still put down money because of their love of the show and the people who make it. Also, I don't think it will make big bucks. It'd be awesome if it did but I doubt it.

This is the first Kickstarter I've ever contributed to and I am fiercely proud of that little green backer banner. I spent all of Wednesday excited watching that number go up and I am still checking it every few hours. 

I'm super happy to be a part of a piece of film history in my own little way. We met the goal in under 12 hours. That's over 2 MILLION DOLLARS in under 2 hours. And a movie that we never thought would really happen is going to get made. 

A few good articles:
*The Huffington Post: The Veronica Mars Kickstarter Isn't Charity, It's An Omen
*LA Times: 'Veronica Mars' mission is a stunning success
*Forbes: How Exactly Did Veronica Mars Fund a Movie in Ten Hours?

Favorite Moments:

Favorite tumblr quotes: 
"And in that moment, I swear we were all Veronica Mars blogs."
"The sleeping fandom has AWOKEN"

Chatting with non-fan (but awesome BFF) Amy:
Amy: cool! i heard 10 dollars gets you a copy of the script? 500 was a k bell voicemail but you already had one!

Yup, yup I did, it was my voicemail message for a year after Kristen Bell recorded it for me at Wizard Con. She's awesome, fyi. And kind of tiny.



No comments:

Post a Comment